Brussels  - The European Union is still awaiting Tehran's official response to an offer of new talks to resolve the dispute over Iran's nuclear activities, but an answer may be coming on Monday, EU diplomats said Saturday.

Two weeks after the Geneva talks involving top officials from Iran, the five permanent UN Security Council members and Germany, it was being pointed out that no specific deadline had been set for Tehran to respond.

Washington, Aug 2: The issue of the July 7 bombing of Indian embassy in Kabul did not figure during the recent meeting between US President George Bush and Pakistan Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani in Washington, when the latter visited the US.

According to the White House Press Secretary Dana Perino, the duo had a “good meeting” earlier this week during which they agreed that the two countries need to fight terrorism jointly.

Washington, August 2: A new Web advertisement released by U. S. presidential candidate John McCain's campaign compares his competitor Barack Obama to Charlton Heston's movie character Moses.

The ad seeks to portray what it says is Obama’s smugness and false regal perception with a new comparison — to Charlton Heston’s famous Hollywood version of the biblical character.

It begins with narrator’s voice referring to Obama as “The One”, the nickname McCain aides are using for their opponent and the aura around him.

Singapore - A bankrupt opposition politician has been prevented from leaving Singapore to attend a prestigious Stanford University programme in the United States because the trip would not benefit her creditors, Chee Siok Chin said Saturday.

"I've travelled to the Ukraine, Brussels, Mali and the Philippines since being declared a bankrupt last August," said the 42-year-old Chee.

A Singapore Democratic Party (SDP) executive committee member and sister of SDP chief Chee Soon Juan, she said that the Official Assignee's Office informed her in a letter that the trip was of no benefit to her creditors. The office must grant permission before a bankrupt person can leave the city-state.

Washington  - US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice praised Congress on Friday for passing legislation that allows Libya to settle all pending lawsuits by victims of terrorism.

Under the arrangement, Libya will place money into a fund to compensate victims and their families, including those who have not already been in connection to the 1988 Pan Am bombing over Lockerbie, Scotland.

Libya is to provide about 800 million dollars for compensation into the fund to settle existing lawsuits and be immune from any further legal action.

Johannesburg/Gaborone  - The government of Botswana has threatened to boycott an upcoming summit of the 14-country Southern African Development Community if controversial Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe attends, South African radio reported Friday.

SAfm radio quoted the foreign ministry of Zimbabwe's diamond-rich neighbour as saying that taking part in a summit of SADC heads of state on August 14-15 in South Africa attended by Mugabe would be tantamount to recognizing him as president.